I think this boat is a good value even though you can find lower cost boats of similar vintage for a few reasons.

-Condition. Fiberglass is in great shape with no stress cracking. Upholstery is orginal & in good condidtion with no dry rot or cracking.

-No wood in the boat, outside of the swim platform

-Battery replaced last season

-The transmission has been rebuilt at the regular interval, which runs north of $2000 if done by a dealer.

-The color scheme does not give away the age. No hot pink or neon green. A combination of white, black, grey, and teal that still looks good. The teal is limited to a pinstripe on the hull and a few accent splashes on the upholstery.

-Carburetor upgraded, always starts first turn.

-The boat design itself itself does not look dated. (Think square corners on windscreen & interior.) Park this boat to a current X1, the hull & windscreen will look very similar. The running surface is actually the same, and has been in MasterCraft's lineup for a long time. (Prostar 205 became the 205V with the addition of deeper sides > X-Star > X-2 > X-1.)

1. Remove bilge plug
2. Change Oil
(a) Drain directly into the waste jugs (1.5 gallons). 7/16” wrench for oil line. Oil can be pumped out via suction or allowed to drain by putting the hose through the hull drain plug to a container on the ground.
3. Fog motor while running slowly. Then down spark plugs. Need plug socket, ratchet, extension, extension knuckle, & wrench to turn plug socket itself. The rear plugs will come out but are difficult. Check gap. If necessary use Motorcraft AWSF22C spark plugs.
4. Drain engine water
(a) Remove exhaust manifold plugs at rear of manifold (1/side)
(b) Remove engine block plugs (1/side)
(c) Disconnect the hoses from front of exhaust manifolds
(d) Remove the large diameter hose from engine block water pump to thermostat
(e) Remove water intake hose from raw water pump
(f) Disconnect water hoses from rear of transmission cooler. Check for trash, reconnect.
5. Remove Impeller
(a) Put Vaseline between several fins
i. Turn over engine several times
(b) Pull out impeller with channel lock pliers
(c) Store in zip-lock w/ Vaseline, place on seat. Replace impeller every other season, or if nicked during removal, or if the blades have taken a set.
Plug exhaust
1. Grease Rudder
2. Run bilge dry & wipe underneath motor
3. Record hours
4. Disconnect battery cables. Remove and store battery in a cool & dry place.
5. Check the wheel bearing grease. (Overgreasing will cause grease to splatter onto the rims while trailering, but won't hurt anything.)
6. Lubricate exposed cable ends with grease (3 on rudder & 2 on engine). Engine cover & floor panel behind engine must be removed to check rudder. Four screws secure the floor panel.
7. Check blower hose for cracks, leaks
8. Change transmission oil if necessary. Dextron II ATF (2 Quart Capacity)
9. Check propeller shaft alignment. The largest feeler gauge that should be able to be inserted in the coupling is 0.003” (0.08mm). If larger can be inserted, engine placement must be adjusted. Should be able to slide propshaft into transmission output flange without cheating the shaft. If it hits the motor position needs to be adjusted. Then slide shaft to mate with flange, should not be able to see daylight anywhere around it.
10. Prop open engine cover ~2”, prop open trunk, crack open cushions for air circulation to prevent musty odors.
11. Lower tower, remove forward legs to allow tower to fit under cover.
12. Store forward tower legs & swim platform under cover.

We normally launch by backing the boat in far enough so the water pickup is submerged. This is a good time to unhook the latch & strap. Then start the boat & launch by backing in until the boat floats off of the trailer.

The bimini top goes on with the collapsible spanner forward. We adjust the front straps to go through the grab rails & clip on the plastic length adjusters. The rear straps are set to allow blue bungee cords doubled over to reach the middle of the grab rail. This keeps a little tension on the bimini top to keep things from flapping around. When removing the top, keep an eye on the plastic inserts inside the mounting brackets on the windshield.

ProStars are designed to run with a pull to the right. This is normal. If the steering cable becomes excessively worn, then this tendency can be exaggerated. Our dealer inspected the steering last spring, and said it looked good. He also stated that the boat handled properly. You will note that you need to keep a hand on the wheel while under power. This tendency is part of the inboard setup for slalom skiing, making it easier to run a straight line through the course as you don't have to turn over center which can be less precise. The boat will hold its throttle setting, as it should. If you find it creeping back, then the linkage needs to be adjusted. We had this done when we bought the boat in 06, and have not had a problem since.

When backing the boat, it will turn to the right. It will back fairly straight by full left rudder & bumping in/out of reverse. You can pivot the boat counterclockwise in one location by alternating forward left rudder/reverse right rudder. You can also use the tendency to back to the right when pulling up to the dock. Come in at a shallow angle, approaching the dock on your right. Pop it into reverse to stop the boat & rotate the back into the dock. These are handling characteristics common to direct drive & v-drive boats.

The boat has a neutral interlock on the transmission. If you attempt to start the boat and nothing happens, then simply pull the gearshift pin out into neutral, and move the throttle lever into & out of the choke position to reset it.

The speed pickup tubes do plug on occasion depending on the water quality. Usually a small pin will dislodge the plug. If not, once onshore the tubing to the pickup can be removed & pickup cleaned.

Experiment with speeds, line lengths, and ballast to see what you like.

Recovering the boat is pretty straightforward. Back in until the tops of the fenders are at the waters surface. Drive the boat onto the trailer, gently power it up to the boat buddy. Have the vehicle driver tell you how far to go and which way to turn the rudder, to avoid too much or too little power and not lining up with the catch. That person may need to shift the nose a little bit to either side until you get the hang of it. Missing the catch will not damage the boat, just back up & try again.

If the prop gets dinged, you will feel a vibration. The props are made of Nibral, (NIckel, BRass, ALuminum) and can easily be repaired. Swap the props while one is being reworked. Use a prop puller to remove the prop, gear pullers tend to pop off the shaft &/or damage the prop. Place a piece of wood between the prop blades against the shaft support & rudder to keep the prop from turning. Be careful not to further damage the prop.

You will notice some water in the bottom of the hull as a result of leakage around the prop shaft seal. This is normal, about 1 drop/min is expected to provide cooling for the packing material, which is a grease impregnated rope like item wrapped around the prop shaft & stuffed in the stuffing box. This can be adjusted by tightening the nut on the stuffing box.

I've used Muriatic acit to clean the boat hull. It is nasty stuff, but does a great job. More user friendly cleaners are available but can't comment on their effectively. Wax afterward of course. Interior care is pretty straightforward. Use a vinyl protectant for marine vinyl, not armor-all. Keep covered & out of sunlight when not in use. The cover can be cleaned just by hosing it off. The teak cleaner works well to bring out the natural wood color, we'd normally do that at the start of the season as part of the spring cleanup when removing from storage.

The transmission clutches & oil pump were rebuilt prior to last season, at about 650 hours. The transmission is a simple Borg-Warner single speed forward/reverse transmission. A rebuilder told me these tend to see clutch plates needing replacement around 6-700 hours, as mine did. My dealer told me that the motors are good to 1500-2000 hours before needing rebuild. It is not uncommon for people to ruin motors by allowing the block to freeze, so when in doubt drain water. The carburetor was upgraded for improved starting prior to the 2010 season, and has worked very well.

The buttons underneath of the switches on the instrument panel are circuit breakers. If you loose power to something, these will reset it. The aux power switches need to be on for the radio & amplifier. Good practice is to run the blower a couple of minutes prior to starting, though we have started the boat many times without doing so. Make a habit of turning the blower on when shutting the motor down. We tended to leave the blower on all the time when on the water. Put the bilge pump to auto when the boat is on the water. You can veriy operation by flipping the float under the motor. Of course, make sure all switches are off when the boat is not in use.

We trailer the boat with the glass windscreen open & cover off to prevent damage.

Nice boat, fair price, detailed ad. Should sell quick this time of year. GLWS. Though the hull was redesigned in 96 (based on the 95 - 97 190 hull) and which the Xstar/X2/X1 were based on. Not the 91 - 95 version.

Nice boat, fair price, detailed ad. Should sell quick this time of year. GLWS. Though the hull was redesigned in 96 (based on the 95 - 97 190 hull) and which the Xstar/X2/X1 were based on. Not the 91 - 95 version.